Stieglitz (surname)

Stieglitz is a surname originating in Germany. Stieglitz, meaning goldfinch, was borrowed into German from a Slavic language, probably Old Czech stehlec.^[1][2]

The surname can have several possible origins. It is considered to have been an ornamental eke-name originally applied to a prominent family, noticeable in appearance for particularly (golden or strawberry) blonde-coloured hair, of Ashkenazi Jews residing within what is now central Germany, from whom Ludwig von Stieglitz was raised to the Russian nobility, and of Protestant Leipzig patricians of German nobility. With the consolidation and expansion eastwards of the German Empire, the name spread. The original German name has also shifted orthographically to Stiglitz and beyond; later, Stieglitz was also transcribed to Sztyglic in Polish and Штиглиц in Russian. It can be a nickname applied to someone who was cheerful or dressed in colorful clothing. It could also be an occupational name for someone who traded birds or caught them. In rare cases it can refer to origin from the Polish village of Siedlisko near Trzcianka, which was formerly called Stieglitz.